


I could forget the world (and still Remember You)

by Daughter_of_the_TARDIS



Series: The Space Wives Collection [15]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Amnesia, Episode: s12e04 Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror, F/F, Lesbians in Space, Space Wives, Temporary Amnesia, really - Freeform, the doctor shouldn't touch things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-03
Updated: 2020-03-03
Packaged: 2021-02-22 23:50:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23002378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daughter_of_the_TARDIS/pseuds/Daughter_of_the_TARDIS
Summary: The Doctor - because there was no one else that the woman could possibly be, dressed like that - swayed towards her, almost unconsciously - like a moth to a flame.  “I remember you - you’re the beautiful one with the guns, yeah?” the Doctor asked, eyeing the woman.
Relationships: The Doctor/River Song, Thirteenth Doctor/River Song
Series: The Space Wives Collection [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2080728
Comments: 9
Kudos: 343





	I could forget the world (and still Remember You)

Tesla had promised them one last tour of Wardenclyffe after the aliens had been defeated. Everything was as the Doctor had dreamed, and she raced from experiment to experiment. The fam followed along behind her, listening intently as she explained everything to them.

She raced ahead of them, completely in awe of everything around her. Marvels that had been lost to time, or were from centuries before their time. She pointed them out to her friends, explaining what they did as she went.

"Oh!" She gasped, barely stopping at one thing before moving onto the next. She reached out, laughing under her breath as the waves of electricity brushed up against her fingertips. The slightly primitive Tesla coil wavered, the charge flickering for a second.

"Doc, wait up." Graham said. He followed along behind her, leaving the others behind for a moment.

"I'll be fine, Graham, promise!" She said, turning to look at him. "It's just a bit of -" before she could finish her sentence, the charge in the coil grew stronger - strong enough to knock her out.

8888

Everything went black. The Doctor collapsed, just in time for Graham to catch her. She was awake again in just a few seconds, but instead of giving them a reassuring smile… she just looked scared. Her eyes went wide and her face turned pale, and then she moved.

"Get off me!" The Doctor yelped, pushing Graham away from her, not caring when she landed on the floor. She scrambled away from him, backing away into a corner of Tesla's lab. 

"Who are you?" The Doctor asked, her voice cracking slightly. "Just leave me alone!"

Yaz moved closer, her attention grabbed by their arguing. She moved slowly, analyzing the situation. Something wasn't right - both on the Doctor's end, and on Graham's. "Doctor, are you alright?" She asked, pitching her voice to be as soothing as she could.

Hazel eyes darted between the three of them, taking a second to look over at Tesla before coming back to them. "What's goin on?" She asked, not a spark of recognition in her eyes. Ryan came hurrying forward, but the Doctor only flinched further back.

"There's somethin wrong with the Doctor." Ryan muttered, backing away slowly to keep from scaring her further. Both he and Yaz looked to Graham for an idea of what to do, but even the normally unflappable man looked lost.

"Why're you callin' me Doctor?"

Ryan squinted, wondering if this was the Doctor's way of getting them back for the last prank that he had pulled. "We always call you Doctor." He said.

"Well what d'you do that for?" She asked, her face scrunching up in confusion. Some things didn't change, no matter how worrying the circumstances were. "Who are you? An' where am I?"

The three humans exchanged a look, communicating silently like they had learned how to do. It was Yaz who spoke first, keeping her voice low and soothing. "We're your friends. Why don't you come with us, and we'll see if we can find some answers."

8888

They led the Doctor through the halls of Wardenclyffe, making their way to the timeship that they had left in the main laboratory. The humans were all nervous, eyes cutting back to the Doctor every few seconds. She looked nervous - she had since they mentioned taking her somewhere - but there was still a flicker of curiosity in her eyes. That was the only hope that they had that whatever had happened to their friend was reversible.

Some of the fear on her features relaxed the second the TARDIS came into view. They had noticed that about the Doctor before - that her ship was almost a security blanket. The Doctor and her TARDIS off to save the universe. Everything was all right as long as the madwoman and her box were together.

This was no exception.

The TARDIS hummed as soon as they entered the timeship, an urgent sound. She was panicking - her Thief wasn't connected right, they couldn't talk at all, let alone in human shells. There was nothing where her Thief should have been. That connection was muted, the memory of how to do so lost with all the others.

The Doctor gripped her head, wincing in pain, and the timeship lowered her hum. "What was that?" She asked. "That sound, what was it?". There was no more fear on her face; instead she just looked interested. Intrigued. Like coming home and finding something brand new, all at once. 

"Look at you." The Doctor breathed, stunned. She looked around the console room like she had never seen it before - and Ryan suspected that as of right now, she hadn't. "You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

"Who are you talkin' to, Doc?" Graham asked, looking nervous. The Doctor had already lost her memory, they didn't need her talking to people who weren't there as well.

But the Doctor kept looking around in awe. "Her." She said softly. "Can't you hear her talking?"

The ship hummed, sounding as pleased as a ship could. But there was an undercurrent of fear that sent goosebumps down their spines as the Old Girl figured out exactly what was going on. A spotlight lit up, catching their attention as it shined across the ship. The beam was focused on a small section underneath the console, illuminating a small metal plaque. The Doctor hurried over, bending down and reading it out loud. 

In case of emergency, press here. See you soon sweetie. - XO, RS. 

She reached out her hand, running her fingertips over the engraved words. "Don’t really remember much, to be honest.." She explained. "But that signature looks familiar."

The humans all looked at each other, none of them knowing exactly what to say in response. Finally, Ryan came up with an answer. "Well maybe they can help you." he offered.

"Exactly.” the Doctor said, smiling hopefully.

They all looked at the button with varying degrees of curiosity and trepidation. "Should we press it?" Graham asked, already knowing what the answer would be.

"Too late, I already have!" The Doctor cheered, and despite herself, Yaz couldn't help but smile. Even without her memories, the Doctor was still the same.

The TARDIS took off, and the jarring of the ship sent them all flying across the control room. The controls of the ship started moving on their own, sending them hurtling through time and space.

"What’s goin’ on?" Yaz asked, looking confused. All four of them were watching the controls as they worked themselves, the ship driving herself. It really drove home just how alive the ship was - like the Doctor was telling them.

Only now their friend didn't look proud of her ship… she just looked scared.

"I don't like this." she admitted - for the first time since they had met her, she sounded properly scared. 

Graham yelped as the floor moved under them again. "What's she doing?" 

But the Doctor shook her head, looking confused. "I don’t know - I think she just does this sometimes!"

The ship came to a stop, and they all breathed just a bit easier. "I thought you didn't remember anything." Ryan stated, crawling back to his feet.

"I don't! There is nothin' up here, no memories at all. Which begs the question… why did I trust you?" The Doctor backed away from them, flinching when Ryan reached towards her. "I don't know you. I don't know any of you."

8888

River couldn't help the grin that spread over her face at the familiar sound of the TARDIS materializing. No matter how many times she heard it, the sound was like sweet music to her ears. She had hated it when she was younger - the sound of her future, set in stone. But now it just meant safety and home, and her ridiculous idiot of a husband. 

She waited for the doors to open and for her husband to come out and sweep her off of her feet like he always did. To whisk her away with the promise of adventure and danger, and a sweet cuddle afterwards.

But after a minute of studiously ignoring the door, there was still no Doctor to be found. Pushing down her growing panic, she put down the book that she had been trying to read - a rather dry read written by one of her colleagues at Luna.

She stepped inside the ship, and immediately knew that this was a Doctor that she had never met before. Even if the crystalline interior of the ship hadn't told her that, the four strangers staring at her did. None of them seemed to recognize her in the slightest - and even more worrying, she didn’t recognize any of them.

"Hello Sweetie." She purred, making her way into the ship. She wasn't sure what had happened, but her concern only grew when her spouse didn't seem to recognize her. The TARDIS was screaming at her, concern radiating from the very frame of the Old Girl. River wasn't quite sure what was going on just yet, but whatever it was, it was serious.

8888

The Doctor - because there was no one else that the woman could possibly be, dressed like that - swayed towards her, almost unconsciously - like a moth to a flame. “I remember you - you’re the beautiful one with the guns, yeah?” the Doctor asked, eyeing the woman. They kept dropping to the gun belt wrapped around her hips. She knew that she wasn’t supposed to like that, but there was a little voice in the back of her head saying that she really did. "Why do I only remember you?"

“My - you really are adorable this time ‘round, aren’t you?” the woman remarked, eyeing the Doctor carefully. She studied the other woman for a moment or two longer before she actually answered the question. “Close enough of a description, I suppose. But the better question is, why don't you remember me completely?". She took a few steps closer, as did the Doctor. Her friends couldn't help the pang in their chests when they saw how she moved towards the stranger instead of backing away in fear like she had with them. It was only when the woman reached towards her that she pulled back slightly.

"So you know the Doctor, then." Yaz surmised, drawing the two blondes' attention away from each other. "Can you help her?"

"What happened?" She asked, making her way to the console. Her fingertips ran over the crystals in a move that they had seen the Doctor do a thousand times before. She waltzed around the controls, flicking switches and moving things around as she tried to figure out exactly what went down.

"We were in Nikola Tesla's laboratory, and she -"

"Stop, I don't need to know anymore." The woman said, already sounding exasperated. "What did she touch?"

The Doctor rolled her eyes. "I'm standin' right here, you know." She interjected, fixing them all with a look.

"Yes, but you don't remember anything." The woman shot back. "So you're not very helpful right now, are you?". She rolled her eyes as she inspected the Time Lord, checking her over for any bumps or bruises. "Lucky I'm here."

For the first time that she could remember, the Doctor felt hopeful. "Do you know who I am?" She asked.

"Yes, sweetie." The woman replied, almost absently. Most of her attention was focused on the console in front of her. She was trying to figure out exactly what had happened, using her connection with the TARDIS to ask the Old Girl any questions she had.

"Sweetie… is that who I am?" The Doctor asked, feeling hopeful. "That sounds right, I feel like I've been called it a lot. They keep callin' me Doctor, is that really my name?"

"Well you're certainly sweet." River murmured, her eyes lighting up when the Doctor blushed. "But don't worry, my love. Everything will be alright."

An almost unnoticeable tension eased, relaxing the Doctor's shoulders. "I believe you. I don't know why, but I do."

“Don't worry, Doctor." The woman smirked. "You'll get used to that all over again."

8888

The mystery woman took the Doctor by the hand, leading her through the ship as they talked. It was all inconsequential things, nothing that could possibly make the Timelord start to panic again. But her friends followed behind, peeking into different rooms as they passed them while keeping one ear on the conversation. None of them had ever been this deep into the ship before, and were eager to see more. Even with their desire to see everything around them, they still kept some of their attention on the couple ahead of them. They told themselves it was to keep an eye on their friend - and it partially was. But the added benefit of satisfying their curiosity couldn’t be denied.

"Can you hear her?" The Doctor asked, still looking awed by the TARDIS.

"Hear who?". Yas asked, looking worried. The Doctor had been asking that since they had entered the ship. And while she had said that she was talking to 'her', none of the humans could figure out exactly who ‘she’ was.

But the curly-haired woman just laughed, nodding as she led the Doctor through the timeship. “Yes, dear. It’s the TARDIS - the Old Girl is trying to make sure you’re alright.” she explained, mischief dancing in her eyes. “She’s very protective of her pilot, you know.”

"This is my ship?" There was a hint of awe and disbelief in her voice - like she couldn't believe that the timeship could belong to anyone.

The woman laughed - a throaty sound that made the Doctor blush. "You own each other." She corrected. "She stole you, and you stole her."

"Who are you, anyway? Why do I trust you? I don't even trust them and I woke up with them standin' over me." The Doctor said, gesturing to the group of humans following behind her. 

“Because you know me, sweetie." River explained, turning into the medbay. She left the humans all gawking at everything in the room, sticking close to the mystery woman. She seemed to at least have a decent idea about what she was doing. “You have for centuries.”

"Centuries?" She echoed, scrunching her face up. "How is that possible? I don’t even know your name.”

River set to work, hooking the Doctor up to the needed equipment. "It's long and complicated, and as soon as we get your memory back you'll understand."

"Can't you explain it to me?" 

"I'm afraid not, Doctor." The woman smiled, looking sad. "Has to be lived." She picked up one of the tools that the TARDIS had set out for her use, quickly scanning the Doctor.

“What’s wrong with her?” Ryan asked, concern flitting over his face.

“Nothing too bad. Just a nasty bump to the head, combined with an electric shock.” River said, trying to reassure them. Judging by the worried looks on all of their faces, it didn’t work nearly as well as she hoped that it would. “Okay, so it’s a little bit bad.” she admitted. “Luckily, its more or less an easy fix.”

“It is?” the Doctor asked, seemingly impressed. River nodded, already reaching for the next tool that she needed. “Doesn’t seem like it would be.”

“Just take a deep breath, Doctor.” River said, pushing a lock of hair out of her wife’s face. “This won’t hurt a bit.” With that said, she pulled out the tool she needed, quickly jabbing it into the back of her skull. The Doctor froze for a second or two as electricity raced through her body, before collapsing backwards.

“There, you see?” the archaeologist chirped, smiling at the Doctor’s friends and their horrified expressions. “I lied.”

8888

The Doctor’s eyes opened slowly, and River smiled. "Welcome back, sweetie." She could see the relief and ancient knowledge back in her wife's eyes, but only had a moment to admire it before she had her arms full of overexcited Time Lady.

“River.” the other woman breathed out her name the way that some would pray to their gods - with complete reverence and devotion. “You’re here.”

“You pressed the panic button, Doctor.” she retorted. “You came to me.” 

“So I did.” the Time Lady realized, a small grin lighting up her face. “I suppose it’s a good thing I did - but how long have you had that button installed for?” 

River shrugged. “In your timeline, a few centuries at least. But only about a day in mine.”

Finally, the others broke in. “Doc?” Graham asked, sounding nervous. “That you?” 

The Doctor turned her attention away from her wife, eyes locking in on her friends. “Fam!” she cheered, her eyes lighting up. She pointed to River, an expression of awe and disbelief on her face. “Look -” she didn’t get a chance to finish what she was saying before she was attacked. All three humans fell upon her as one, nearly crushing her in their rush to hug her. 

"Oh no." The Doctor muttered, locking eyes with her wife. "River, they're crying. What do I do with crying humans?" She asked. She was trying her best to comfort them - hugging them back and making strange comforting noises. 

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out, darling.” River said, taking a step back. She tried to ignore the hurt on her wife’s face as she got her things together, but it was hard to do. “But as for me, I’m off again.” She had to work even harder to not be affected by the distressed sound her wife made.

“Will I ever see you again?” The Doctor asked, getting up off of the medical bed and leaving her friends. She crossed the room to stand next to her wife, taking River’s hands in her own. “I’ll miss you.”

River smiled - that familiar hint of mischief in her eyes, the look that made her Time Lord’s hearts race every time. It was a look that promised chaos and adventure, running and danger. And then she said those words - the words that she had been listening for for centuries. “Spoilers, my love.” With that said, she was gone - a quick press of keys on the Vortex Manipulator strapped to her wrist, and a kiss blown through the air were her last moments on board the timeship. For now. The Doctor knew that her wife would be back sooner instead of later - River could never pass up the opportunity for an adventure with a new body.

“Who was that?” Yaz asked, still staring at the spot that the woman had vanished from. She wasn’t completely sure what had happened - one moment, a strange woman had waltzed into the TARDIS and flirted with the Doctor, only to disappear a minute later - having returned the Doctor’s memories and broken her hearts in that same amount of time. “She was the only person you didn’t forget - you didn’t even completely remember the TARDIS.”

“Professor River Song.” the Doctor said, a wide grin on her face. Whenever she least expected it, but always when she needed her most… River was there for her. She turned back to what she was doing, grabbing her coat and heading back towards the console room. Best to stay busy for now - keep herself from thinking about her wife too much. “How could I ever forget her?”


End file.
